Food Study: Dairy

[Nancy LC]

Casomorphin peptides are created by human digestion of dairy products:
Search Pubmed (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?term=casomorphin&search=Find%20Articles&db=pmc&cmd=search)
BCM is a milk-derived peptide with opiate-like properties which is absorbed through the gastrointestinal mucosa. It has been shown to affect gastrointestinal motility, absorption and secretion. Recently, modulation of the immune system by BCM was also reported. In this study we investigated the in vitro effect of BCM on the human mucosal immune response as represented by lamina propria lymphocyte (LPL) proliferation. Results show that BCM significantly inhibited concanavalin A (ConA) stimulated LPL DNA synthesis. BCM also inhibited ornithine decarboxylase activity (ODC) in ConA-stimulated LPL. Although BCM also inhibited 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate (TPA) stimulated LPL DNA synthesis, the degree of inhibition was much lower than in ConA-stimulated LPL. The anti-proliferative effect of BCM was reversed by the opiate receptor antagonist, neloxone. Our results suggest that BCM may affect the human mucosal immune system, possibly via the opiate receptor.
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pmcentrez&artid=1535619
My Translation: Diary products potentially suppress the immune system and cause constipation because we break down the casein protein into something that resembles morphine. Giving people a drug that inhibits morphine also works to prevent this from happening.

Could this morphine like molecule also explain why we find it so difficult to give dairy up?

Hormones found naturally in dairy products which are meant to help young cows grow rapidly may do us harm.
milk gets into your bloodstream – does it
matter? You bet it matters. A liter of whole milk
(633 kcal) contains 1,930
nano-grams of betacellulin (10)
whereas the amount of EGF
that your salivary glands secrete
is only 35.3 ng per day.
The binding affinity of betacellulin
to the EGF receptor is
greater than that for EGF; consequently
betacellulin can displace
EGF from the EGF receptor
(9). The amount of betacellulin
that you get from
drinking even a single cup of
milk (457 nanograms) has the
capacity to stimulate the EGF
receptor 10 times more than
what normally would occur during
a 24 hour period from EGF
in saliva.
The full article (http://thepaleodiet.com/newsletter/newsletters/PDNCourierVol2No5.pdf) describes a possible link between EGF and cancer.

More later...

[ProteusOne]

Great find, Nancy.

[Nancy LC]

My own personal story with Dairy is that I have antibodies to casein (one of the proteins in dairy products) in my fecal sample I sent to Enterolab.com along with gluten antibodies. Giving up dairy seems to have cured my issues with post nasal drip, constipation, gas, muscle spasms (oddly enough), and helped me with my autoimmune arthritis. As far as I know, lactose doesn't bother me, it is the proteins.

I'm a little interested in a sort of dairy out there that has a different type of casein protein. There's been a lot of papers published about it, but I don't think it is available where I live. Anyway, it doesn't break down into casomorphins on digestion.

[jono]

I was once really big on raw organic pasture fed milk and cream. But then I noticed it was making my nose stuffed up when I drank a lot of milk. I could probably tolerate a little dairy, but I also worry about the hormones and metabolic effects (regarding insulin and IGF-1) of milk, and also the fact that galactose is more glycotoxin forming compared to glucose. Plus I recently learned that the dairy I trusted and researched actually uses some milk from another dairy to make their cream... they should have made this clear on their website and product labeling.

[frankly]

Very interesting, thanks for sharing that.

[waywardsis]

Do you mean A1 and A2 casein? I thought that goat/sheep was A2 (not sure on that), but you're bothered by goat cheese etc aren't you?

I'm going to have another casein test done later on this winter to see where I stand now that I've been using goat/sheep cheese and butter. I haven't noticed any negative effects from it, but sometimes it's hard to tell bc I don't eat them in isolation.

[Nancy LC]

I don't know if goat cheese is 100% A2 or not.

[Nancy LC]

Milk. It does a body good, or not? (http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/2006/12/19/421/) Dr. Eades talks about Dr. Cordain's research.

[Nancy LC]

Dairy and Parkinson's disease: http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/165/9/998

[jono]

Dairy and Parkinson's disease: http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/165/9/998

But another study found that "Dietary intake of cheese is associated with a lower prevalence of cognitive impairment, with a dose-response effect..."
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=17315080&ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

The parkinson's study found greater association with milk than with all dairy products, and no association with dairy fat intake.

Cheese is associated with testicular cancer and colon cancer... but damn, meat is associated some cancers too... but what about raw meat? There's studies showing every single food is poison, and other studies showing those same poisons are actually panaceas. So what to do? Pick your poison and eat lots of leafy greens and cruciferous veggies. Maybe cold-processed organic grass-fed whey concentrate is the best protein source... whey actually has many studies showing it to be anti-cancerous despite whatever growth factors it may contain.

[Bat Spit]

cause constipation because we break down the casein protein into something that resembles morphine

I really must remember this, phrased just this way.

An ice cream truck crashed into my wagon last night. I wouldn't have any trouble with dairy anymore if ice cream wasn't my husband's favorite food ever.

Could this morphine like molecule also explain why we find it so difficult to give dairy up?

I don't know. The only real problem I've had getting rid of dairy is its overwhelming presence in every corner of USerican cuisine (ok, I know that's a really pretentious word for the slop most people eat). It takes time and effort to figure out what on earth to eat if you can't have cheese, butter, milk, cream, sour cream... The same way some people get 'bored' with food when they go low carb, because we've taken the middle out of their staples. And dairy free *and* low carb...just takes a while to branch out into better food habits.

[Sagehill]

I'm a little interested in a sort of dairy out there that has a different type of casein protein. There's been a lot of papers published about it, but I don't think it is available where I live. Anyway, it doesn't break down into casomorphins on digestion.This is the A2 milk, produced by "unimproved" cows... ie, heritage cattle breeds that have never been crossbred for better production, like the old-style Jerseys and Guerneys, Highland cattle, Dexters, and most meat breeds like Angus. Apparently, the gene that has increased milk production way beyond normal is what created the A1 type milk that is so prevalent now. Seems to me I read that nearly 95% of the commercial high-volume dairy cows have the A1 gene, whereas most breeds that don't produce a lot of milk tend to be the A2 type... jerseys, some guernseys and Dexters. Goats and sheep are also A2, which is probably why a lot of people who can't tolerate cows milk do well on goats milk.

The A2 gene news is fairly ground-breaking stuff in the northern hemisphere, though several years old Down Under where it was discovered. It's so new here that it's difficult to even get your cows tested for A1 or A2, unless you know someone who knows someone, who really knows someone. From what I've gathered, they're trying to keep it quiet until they get a lock on the testing patent. Of course.

In the meantime, getting milk from goats/sheep or unimproved breeds is a fairly safe bet for those who want to try A2 milk.

[lcgrrl2006]

My own personal story with Dairy is that I have antibodies to casein (one of the proteins in dairy products) in my fecal sample I sent to Enterolab.com along with gluten antibodies. Giving up dairy seems to have cured my issues with post nasal drip, constipation, gas, muscle spasms (oddly enough), and helped me with my autoimmune arthritis. As far as I know, lactose doesn't bother me, it is the proteins.

I'm a little interested in a sort of dairy out there that has a different type of casein protein. There's been a lot of papers published about it, but I don't think it is available where I live. Anyway, it doesn't break down into casomorphins on digestion.

Nancy,
Now that I think about it - when I eliminated dairy for a short while I didn't have the chronic constip. I normally do. Thanks for the post.

[Nancy LC]

I'm pretty sure goat's milk does the same thing to me that cow's milk does. I keep trying it and kind of feel borderline whenever I do.

[waywardsis]

I just tried cow cheese again - old white cheddar, raw milk & organic stuff - and felt totally fine. No reaction at all. I went totally out on a limb and tried a blue cheese dip/dressing (no soy oil in it, few ingredients) and have had it twice - no reaction.

I tested the same as you for casein...I am going to test again. Could be I'm having negative effects that aren't apparent to me - wonder if noticeable symptoms are dose-dependent and variable then for different people.

I also want to justify keeping cheese in my life :) I am weak...WEAK

[deirdra]

waywardsis, Sometimes when you re-introduce a food you can tolerate it, but if you eat it every day, the reaction returns. Rotation diets that include the problem food every 4th day or every 7th day work for many. I've found that I'll start getting hives if I eat eggs 7 days a week, but if I skip a couple of days, I'm fine.

[kneebrace]

waywardsis, Sometimes when you re-introduce a food you can tolerate it, but if you eat it every day, the reaction returns. Rotation diets that include the problem food every 4th day or every 7th day work for many. I've found that I'll start getting hives if I eat eggs 7 days a week, but if I skip a couple of days, I'm fine.

That's interesting D, I find the same thing with eggs. Annoying but bearable. Imagine never being able to eat eggs.

Stuart

[Fitmamajen]

I just tried cow cheese again - old white cheddar, raw milk & organic stuff - and felt totally fine. No reaction at all. I went totally out on a limb and tried a blue cheese dip/dressing (no soy oil in it, few ingredients) and have had it twice - no reaction.

I tested the same as you for casein...I am going to test again. Could be I'm having negative effects that aren't apparent to me - wonder if noticeable symptoms are dose-dependent and variable then for different people.

I also want to justify keeping cheese in my life :) I am weak...WEAK

Keep us posted in your test results. I want cheese and eggs back in my life...It would really make low carbing much easier!

Jen

[Nancy LC]

waywardsis, Sometimes when you re-introduce a food you can tolerate it, but if you eat it every day, the reaction returns. Rotation diets that include the problem food every 4th day or every 7th day work for many. I've found that I'll start getting hives if I eat eggs 7 days a week, but if I skip a couple of days, I'm fine.
I kind of worry about that personally. If it is a food intolerance and food intolerances cause issues in the GI tract at some level, for instance there are cellular level effects gluten can cause long before it harms the villi. Combine that with a leaky gut and you could have effects happening anywhere in the body as the proteins escape.

Leaky gut and the innate immune system explained (http://thefooddoc.blogspot.com/search/label/Leaky%20gut%20and%20the%20innate%20immune%20system)
Lymphocytes, eosinophils and mast cells: What your "normal" appearing gut lining may be hiding under the microscope can be missed. (http://thefooddoc.blogspot.com/search?q=+Lymphocytes%2C+eosinophils+and+mast+cells%3A+What+your+%22normal%22+appearing+gut+lining+may+be+hiding+under+the+microscope+can+be+missed.)

[waywardsis]

That worries me too. I'm going to order another casein test in January, and if it comes back the same then I'm done with dairy.

[Fitmamajen]

I kind of worry about that personally. If it is a food intolerance and food intolerances cause issues in the GI tract at some level, for instance there are cellular level effects gluten can cause long before it harms the villi. Combine that with a leaky gut and you could have effects happening anywhere in the body as the proteins escape.

Leaky gut and the innate immune system explained (http://thefooddoc.blogspot.com/search/label/Leaky%20gut%20and%20the%20innate%20immune%20system)
Lymphocytes, eosinophils and mast cells: What your "normal" appearing gut lining may be hiding under the microscope can be missed. (http://thefooddoc.blogspot.com/search?q=+Lymphocytes%2C+eosinophils+and+mast+cells%3A+What+your+%22normal%22+appearing+gut+lining+may+be+hiding+under+the+microscope+can+be+missed.)

I was reading that the IgA reactions (I have that reaction with gluten) cause the damage and if you can remove those then you can often eliminate the IgG reactions. I was thinking about getting an Entrolab IgA casien test to make sure I am not having that kind of reaction. I have read that the IgA reactions are pretty much for life but the IgG are aquired from leaky gut ect.

Jen

[waywardsis]

I tested positive for casein on the Enterolab test - that's IgA right? I am going to retest. But I've been bloaty and feeling mushy. Crap. I also notice that if cheese is in the house I want to eat it on everything. I only find this with cow's cheese, not goat or sheep. With cow's, I'll make foods deliberately to include it. Nancy - does this make me a morphine addict? :)

[kallyn]

Just keep repeating to yourself, "I am not a baby cow. I am not a baby cow. I EAT baby cows."

[Nancy LC]

Or... "If I eat like a baby cow, I will become one." :)

[kneebrace]

I tested positive for casein on the Enterolab test - that's IgA right? I am going to retest. But I've been bloaty and feeling mushy. Crap. I also notice that if cheese is in the house I want to eat it on everything. I only find this with cow's cheese, not goat or sheep. With cow's, I'll make foods deliberately to include it. Nancy - does this make me a morphine addict? :)

Wayward, if you can find a source of reasonably priced goat milk, have a go at making your own curd cheese and then you can avoid the huge amounts of salt that most cheeses (including commercial goat cheese) contain. It's really easy. For the rennet, just use junket tabs. I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of the problems people get from eating a lot of cheese is the salt overload. Low carb goat cheese cake. Yum!

Stuart

[Fitmamajen]

I tested positive for casein on the Enterolab test - that's IgA right? I am going to retest. But I've been bloaty and feeling mushy. Crap. I also notice that if cheese is in the house I want to eat it on everything. I only find this with cow's cheese, not goat or sheep. With cow's, I'll make foods deliberately to include it. Nancy - does this make me a morphine addict? :)

If you are allergic/intolerant to a food and want it all the time it sets up what is called the allergy-addiction cycle. I am gluten and dairy sensitive and guess what I could eat all day long--shredded wheat cereal and milk!!!

It is great that goat and sheep milk are probably okay...just to have some variety in life :)

Jen

[Nancy LC]

It is great that goat and sheep milk are probably okay...just to have some variety in life

I think that's debatable... I still break out in zits when I have goat/sheep dairy. I think drinking goat milk still causes me sinus issues. Maybe not the constipation and muscle cramping.

[Fitmamajen]

I think that's debatable... I still break out in zits when I have goat/sheep dairy. I think drinking goat milk still causes me sinus issues. Maybe not the constipation and muscle cramping.

I mean that the other milks might be okay for waywardsis in particular ;) I am not truly paleo though because I think that unprocessed milk can be a healthy food for some people. I can't tolerate any milks at this point either but my son and husband do well on them and I am jealous!

[waywardsis]

I haven't tried goat milk - milk just turns me off now. Cream, that's another story. Haven't had it in ages though.

Yep, the craving thing - very familiar with that. I used to say that I could happily live off of crusty french/italian bread and sharp cheddar cheese. Hell, I used to. Crackers and cheese were a staple snack. Really, the only cheese I crave (or will eat lots of if it's around) is sharp cheddar, like an extra-old. I love the tang. Other cheese, I can take or leave. But a nice, sharp cheddar with some red grapes or apple slices - oooh. Or grated on chili - oooh some more. [/addictive raving]

[Nancy LC]

Is all that calcium a healthy thing?
http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=358037

[Nancy LC]

Another nail in the coffin of dairy.
http://thefooddoc.blogspot.com/2007/12/yeast-sugar-also-found-in-cows-milk.html
A new report suggests that a sugar found in Cow’s milk, contributes to the development of Crohn’s disease. This sugar mannan is also produced by the dietary yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae or common Baker’s or Brewer’s yeast used to bake bread and brew beer. Mannan has been shown to make white blood cells lazy and allow overgrowth of the bacteria E. coli. Both Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast and E. coli bacteria are linked somehow to Crohn's disease based on the presence of antibodies in the blood to them found in most people with this chronic incurable bowel disorder.
Now... someone please come take the cheese out of my house I just bought on an impulse!

[Dodger]

Is there any mannan in cheese or butter?

[Nancy LC]

Don't know, Dodger!

Here's another article about it: http://www.hearingreview.com/reuters_article.asp?id=20071227scie001.html

[waywardsis]

Noooooooo!

Tracy wants her cheesecake!

[Nancy LC]

Well, I think this proves it. Diary constipates me. I started eating a bit of cheese around the holiday time... it started to increase after awhile. All the while I'm thinking... Man, my bowels are so nice a quiet. No messy BM's just sort of on the slightly constipated side. But in the back of my head I'm thinking, it's the cheese. Finally yesterday I got rid of the last of the dairy and... guess what? 24 hours later my somewhat messy BM's are back.

So dairy may very well mask other intestinal issues.

I'm going to try to figure out what is causing it.

[lcstudent]

I find that eating magnesium-rich foods or taking magnesium citrate on days when I consume dairy helps with regulating the bms. Referring back to Cordain's writings on it, it makes sense. :)

A new report suggests that a sugar found in Cow’s milk, contributes to the development of Crohn’s disease.

If you're eating low carb dairy like FAGE yogurt or cheese, would this be relevant?

[Nancy LC]

The sugar missing from yogurt and cheese is lactose. I don't know anything about what fermentation does to mannon.
I find that eating magnesium-rich foods or taking magnesium citrate on days when I consume dairy helps with regulating the bms. Referring back to Cordain's writings on it, it makes sense.
You can take immodium AD when you have diarrhea too, but seems to me that is just treating a symptom.

[lcstudent]

The sugar missing from yogurt and cheese is lactose. I don't know anything about what fermentation does to mannon.

You can take immodium AD when you have diarrhea too, but seems to me that is just treating a symptom.

There's nothing unnatural about upping magnesium consumption. It's just using the concept of a "balanced diet" to your advantage if you enjoy dairy and the benefits of its saturated fat and probiotic content.

[Nancy LC]

Cow's milk may increase the risk of diabetes (http://www.newscientist.com/channel/health/mg19826553.000-cows-milk-may-increase-the-risk-of-diabetes.html?feedId=online-news_rss20)

Does drinking infant formula made of cow's milk increase the risk of developing type 1 diabetes?

In 1993, a Finnish study found that consuming dairy products early on correlated with diabetes risk. One explanation is that beta-lactoglobulin, a protein in cow's, but not human, milk prompts babies to make antibodies that also attack glycodelin, a protein vital for training the immune system. The mistuned immune system then mistakenly destroys insulin-producing pancreatic cells, leading to type 1 diabetes.
“The mistuned immune system mistakenly destroys insulin-producing cells”

Now Marcia Goldfarb of the company Anatek-EP in Portland, Maine, has found that five children with type 1 diabetes, who were fed cow's-milk formula, all have antibodies to beta-lactoglobulin (Journal of Proteome Research, DOI: 10.1021/pr800041d).

Diabetes researchers are cautious, though. "It's fascinating, but needs more back-up data," says Mikael Knip of the Hospital for Children and Adolescents in Helsinki, Finland. He is coordinating a large international study, TRIGR, to test whether children fed formula have a lower risk of disease than those fed the hydrolysed version, in which milk proteins have been broken down.
Further links if you follow the link to the original article.

[lcstudent]

I firmly believed that some of us are adapted to dairy and some of us aren't, especially after talking to my bio professor. Perhaps this is a part of the paleo plan that you have to feel out through self-experimentation.

[Wifezilla]

I have had constipation issues for years. It has recently cleared up...since adding yogurt almost daily.

I have given up milk, cream cheese, etc....

But I am liking the yogurt :D

[jono]

i've found that eating raw meat results in the cleanest BMs which are soft yet firm... not messy, and not clumpy.

milk and especially lots of cheese does tend to result in harder, clumpier BMs.

[LOOPS]

I totally agree on the magnesium issue. I can't help but feel that low-carb/low calcium dairy is better for me - not as good as meat, but better than eating up to a whole gram of calcium at a time (100g of hard cheese).

I always supplement with magnesium anyway so never had a problem with constipation. I heard that a cup of strong coffee will sort that out anyway.

And what with most people being calcium-toxic (due to not enough magnesium) there is no way I would eat cheese if I didn't have access to magnesium pills. A good way around the issue would be to eat lots of nuts/seeds/spinach, but some people have issues with these foods (digestion etc).

[Nancy LC]

I don't quite get how is treating the constipation caused by dairy with amounts of magnesium that irritates the bowels is actually a good thing. It seems like the sort of madness our doctors subscribe to by treating symptoms, not causes.

Anyway, that's the logic I use on myself. Oddly enough, when I was eating gluten the dairy probably kept me from having constant diarrhea, until the sensitivity got really bad. Now I could look at that as "Hey, the dairy was a cure!" or I could look at that as two bad things happening that just worked against each other.

[Nancy LC]

Pretty good thread on dairy and acne: http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?p=7451433#post7451433

[anita45]

Re: dairy and acne - I used to work in a pharmacy and remember reading an article in one of the Pharmacist's journal about insulin levels and dairy. They basically put a group of people on a LC diet though didn't call it that - but interestingly they were made to avoid dairy. Result - (unsurprisingly) dramatic improvements.

This is going a while back - 2002/3 and I don't have any links but I assumed that it was well known (amongst dermatologists anyway) about the link between dairy and acne and insulin levels and acne because so many of my friends and acquaintances have been instructed to follow such diets (not that they stick to them but that's another matter) by their specialists.

[Nancy LC]

bumping for Kallyn

[maryholmes]

I notice nasal drip from dairy, ear infections, and sinus infections.

[rachelintx]

Awesome post!